ISO 14067 Data Requirements: A Practical PCF Checklist for Manufacturers

What product, supplier, factory, logistics, and evidence data you need before calculating a credible product carbon footprint

Short answer: ISO 14067 does not prescribe one universal spreadsheet or data template. A credible product carbon footprint (PCF) needs a clearly defined product and reporting unit, a documented life-cycle boundary, representative activity and emissions-factor data, transparent calculation choices, and evidence that allows another qualified person to review the result.

A customer asks:

“Can you provide an ISO 14067 product carbon footprint for this product?”

The usual response is to gather the bill of materials (BOM), electricity bills, and any carbon values available from suppliers.

Those are useful inputs—but they are not a complete PCF data pack.

ISO 14067 sets out principles, requirements, and guidance for quantifying and reporting the carbon footprint of a product in a way that is consistent with the life-cycle assessment framework in ISO 14040 and ISO 14044. It covers both full and partial product carbon footprints and addresses one environmental impact category: climate change.

In practice, your calculation should allow a reviewer to answer seven questions:

1. What product was assessed?
2. What quantity or service does the result represent?
3. Which life-cycle stages were included and excluded?
4. Where did the important input data come from?
5. How were shared resources and recycling treated?
6. Which assumptions could materially change the result?
7. Can the calculation be reproduced from the available records?

This guide explains the information manufacturers should prepare before an ISO 14067 PCF project begins.

Standards note: ISO 14067:2018 remains the current published edition and was confirmed in 2024. ISO also lists a revised edition as under development. Check the current edition, applicable product category rules, customer instructions, and verification programme requirements at the start of every formal project.

ISO uses the term “carbon footprint of a product,” or CFP. This article uses “product carbon footprint,” or PCF, because it is common in industry. The two terms refer to the same concept here.

What data is needed for an ISO 14067 PCF?

Most manufacturing PCF projects need the following ten data blocks:

The sections below turn these blocks into a practical preparation checklist.

1. Define the goal, product, and reporting unit

Clarify why the PCF is being prepared

The intended use affects the required level of detail, data quality, review, and disclosure.

Common uses include:

• Internal product screening
• Product-design or sourcing decisions
• Customer or procurement requests
• Supplier questionnaires
• Tender submissions
• Scope 3 calculations
• Environmental declarations
• Public product claims
• Independent verification

Before collecting data, record:

• Intended audience and decision to be supported
• Applicable standard, programme, or product category rule
• Customer-specific instructions
• Required delivery date
• Review or verification expectations
• Whether the result will be communicated publicly

An internal screening estimate may use more secondary data. A result intended for verification, an environmental declaration, or a public comparison usually needs tighter rules, stronger evidence, and more formal review.

Identify the exact product configuration

Connect the calculation to a defined product—not a generic product family.

Record:

• Product name, model, and SKU
• Product description and specification
• BOM revision
• Production site
• Supplier configuration
• Packaging configuration
• Production period
• Destination market, when relevant

“Aluminium enclosure” is too broad. A more useful definition is:

Model AX-24 aluminium enclosure, BOM revision 4, manufactured at the Suzhou site during calendar year 2025, including standard export packaging.

If several models or sites are combined, document the inclusion criteria and weighting method.

Define what the result represents

The result must be tied to a clear unit. Depending on the product, this may be:

• One finished product
• One kilogram of material
• One square metre of fabric
• One tonne of steel
• One litre of chemical product
• One thousand packaging units
• A product providing a defined service over a stated lifetime

For products whose function matters, a functional unit may be needed. For example:

One reusable transport container providing 100 delivery cycles over five years.

For an intermediate material whose final function is not yet known, a mass-based declared unit such as one kilogram may be more appropriate.

Also record the reference flow—the amount of product required to deliver that function—and any conversion between purchasing units, BOM units, production units, and the reporting unit.

2. Set the life-cycle boundary and build a process map

Define the processes included in the calculation before requesting data. Otherwise, teams often collect detailed BOM information while overlooking factory losses, subcontracted processes, packaging, or transport.

Potential life-cycle stages include:

• Raw-material extraction and processing
• Component manufacturing
• Inbound transport
• Manufacturing and assembly
• Production waste
• Packaging
• Distribution and storage
• Product use and maintenance
• End-of-life transport and treatment

ISO 14067 also covers partial PCFs. A partial result can stop at a defined point, such as factory gate, provided its boundary is clearly stated and the result is not presented as a complete life-cycle footprint.

Avoid relying only on shorthand such as “cradle-to-gate.” Add a plain-language boundary statement:

The calculation includes raw-material production, component manufacturing, inbound transport, manufacturing energy, production loss, and packaging through factory dispatch. Customer delivery, product use, and end of life are excluded.

Record:

• Included and excluded life-cycle stages
• Reason for each significant exclusion
• Cut-off criteria
• Treatment of capital equipment and infrastructure
• Treatment of recycled and recovered materials
• Any customer, sector, or programme boundary rules

Then create a process map showing how materials and energy move through the product system. A manufacturing map might include receiving, cutting, forming, machining, surface treatment, assembly, testing, packaging, and dispatch. The GHG Protocol Product Standard also uses life-cycle mapping to help companies account for product emissions and identify reduction opportunities.

For each process, identify its owner, location, inputs, outputs, waste, transport links, available records, and data gaps.

3. Prepare the BOM and material data

The BOM should describe the materials and components required for the defined product unit.

Check that:

• The BOM matches the assessed model and revision
• Quantities and units are consistent
• Material descriptions are specific enough for dataset matching
• Bought-in and internally manufactured parts are distinguished
• Packaging is included or recorded separately
• Production loss is not confused with finished-product mass
• Supplier location means the production site, not only the sales-office address

A product containing 1 kg of aluminium may require more than 1 kg of input material once cutting loss, scrap, and rejected parts are considered.

For agricultural, forestry, bio-based, or land-intensive inputs, additional information may be needed on biogenic carbon, land use, and land-use change under the applicable methodology.

4. Collect manufacturing and site data

The BOM describes what is in the product. It rarely captures everything consumed to manufacture it.

Depending on the process, collect:

• Purchased and on-site-generated electricity
• Natural gas, diesel, and other fuels
• Steam, heating, and cooling
• Refrigerant losses
• Direct process emissions
• Water or process chemicals where relevant to the model
• Production output
• Machine or operating hours
• Scrap, yield, and rework
• Waste quantities and treatment routes
• Internal transport

For every significant input, record:

• Original quantity and unit
• Data period
• Site and process covered
• Source document
• Whether the value was measured, calculated, or estimated
• Conversion method
• Responsible data owner

Align the production denominator with the same period and scope as the factory data wherever possible. For example, dividing annual site electricity by product output from only nine months can distort the allocated result.

Also check for common double-counting risks. On-site solar generation may already be included in a facility’s total electricity consumption. Waste may already be reflected in purchased material quantities. A supplier PCF may already include transport or packaging that your model calculates separately.

5. Document allocation of shared resources

Factories often produce several products using shared buildings, utilities, lines, or equipment. The PCF therefore needs a documented method for assigning a share of those inputs to the assessed product.

Possible allocation bases include:

• Submetered energy use
• Machine hours or production time
• Product mass
• Number of units
• Floor area
• Economic value
• A combination of operational drivers

Prefer a basis that reflects the physical relationship between the process and the product where feasible.

For example, allocating oven energy by product mass may be reasonable when similar products run through the same temperature profile. It may be misleading when products require very different temperatures or cycle times.

For each shared resource, record:

• Products or processes receiving the allocation
• Allocation basis and source data
• Formula and calculation period
• Reason for the selected method
• Effect of a plausible alternative method, if material

Do not leave allocation logic hidden inside an unexplained spreadsheet formula.

6. Evaluate supplier data and select secondary datasets

Check supplier-specific information before using it

A supplier may provide a product-specific PCF, EPD, material composition, site activity data, recycled-content evidence, or information about its process route.

Before inserting a supplier carbon value into your model, check:

• Product and production-site match
• Declared or functional unit
• Reporting period
• Life-cycle stages included
• Allocation and recycling methods
• Data sources and database versions
• Verification or review status
• Supporting methodology and evidence

Supplier-specific does not automatically mean suitable. An unexplained supplier number may be less defensible than a transparent secondary dataset that closely represents the actual material and technology.

Record why each secondary dataset was chosen

When primary data is unavailable, secondary data may come from life-cycle inventory databases, government publications, industry associations, peer-reviewed studies, or published EPDs.

For every important dataset, record:

• Dataset and provider name
• Database version and reference year
• Geography
• Material, technology, or process represented
• Unit and included life-cycle stages
• Electricity and recycling assumptions
• Reason for selection

Assess representativeness across four dimensions:

Choose the most representative available dataset—not the one that produces the lowest result.

7. Add logistics, packaging, use, and end-of-life data

Logistics

For each included transport stage, collect:

• Origin and destination
• Transport mode
• Distance and how it was determined
• Vehicle, vessel, or freight type where known
• Shipment weight or tonne-kilometres
• Load factor and empty return where required
• Temperature control where relevant
• Supporting shipping or carrier record

If actual distance is unavailable, document whether the estimate uses a route planner, port-to-port route, standard distance, or conservative assumption.

Packaging

Packaging is frequently absent from the product BOM. Record primary, secondary, and transport packaging separately, including:

• Material type and weight per product
• Recycled content
• Supplier
• Reuse cycles
• Pallet or container allocation
• End-of-life assumption

Confirm which packaging configuration belongs to the assessed product and whether reusable packaging is divided across its expected number of uses.

Use and end of life

For a full life-cycle PCF, additional assumptions may include:

• Energy or fuel consumed during use
• Expected lifetime and usage frequency
• Maintenance, consumables, and replacement parts
• Regional electricity mix
• Recycling, reuse, incineration, and landfill rates
• Collection and end-of-life transport
• Recycling-allocation approach

Use and end-of-life assumptions can dominate the result for energy-using products or materially affect products containing recoverable materials. Model alternative scenarios when plausible behaviour or treatment routes could change the conclusion.

8. Align time periods and assess data quality

Not every input must come from the same year, but the study should represent a defined period.

Track separately:

• PCF reporting period
• BOM effective date
• Factory-data period
• Supplier-data period
• Dataset reference year
• Report publication date

When using mixed-year data, check whether the product design, supplier, site, process technology, electricity source, recycled content, packaging, transport route, or production yield changed.

Classify important inputs by source type:

• Measured primary data
• Supplier-reported or supplier-calculated data
• Secondary database data
• Engineering estimate
• Screening assumption

Then assess technological, geographical, and time representativeness, completeness, reliability, and methodological consistency. Focus first on inputs that contribute most to the result or carry the greatest uncertainty.

Where uncertainty could affect a decision, use contribution analysis, alternative datasets, sensitivity tests, or minimum–maximum scenarios. Avoid presenting unnecessary decimal precision when major inputs remain estimated.

9. Maintain an evidence and assumptions trail

A credible PCF data pack contains more than a final spreadsheet and result.

Keep:

• Approved BOM and product specifications
• Supplier declarations, PCFs, and EPDs
• Utility bills, meter exports, and fuel records
• Production, yield, and scrap reports
• Transport documents
• Packaging specifications
• Dataset references and factor versions
• Unit conversions and allocation calculations
• Assumptions and exclusions register
• Review comments and approvals
• Calculation version history
• Final report

An assumptions register can be simple:

For each important value, a reviewer should be able to trace the original source, owner, period, unit conversion, calculation step, and current version.

10. Prepare the report and use accurate claims

A practical PCF report should identify:

• Goal and intended use
• Product description and reporting unit
• Included and excluded life-cycle stages
• Process map and reporting period
• Primary and secondary data sources
• Allocation and recycling methods
• Assumptions, exclusions, and limitations
• Calculation result and contribution analysis
• Sensitivity or uncertainty findings
• Review or verification status
• Recalculation triggers

ISO 14044 provides the underlying LCA framework for goal and scope, inventory analysis, impact assessment, interpretation, reporting, limitations, and critical review.

Be precise about “ISO 14067 aligned”

These descriptions are not interchangeable:

• Prepared with reference to ISO 14067
• Prepared in accordance with ISO 14067 and applicable programme rules
• Internally reviewed
• Critically reviewed
• Independently verified under a named programme

Avoid saying:

• “ISO-certified PCF” without identifying a legitimate conformity-assessment route
• “ISO verified” when only an internal review occurred
• “Complete PCF” when significant life-cycle stages are excluded
• “Supplier-specific” when generic datasets were used
• “Actual emissions” when material inputs are estimates

ISO develops standards but does not itself perform certification or issue certificates. Those activities are performed by external bodies under applicable arrangements, as explained in ISO’s certification guidance.

Suitable wording for a preliminary result might be:

This product carbon footprint was prepared with reference to ISO 14067 using the data, methods, and assumptions described in this report. Secondary data was used where supplier-specific information was unavailable. Independent verification has not been completed.

Copyable ISO 14067 data-readiness checklist

Before calculation begins, confirm that you have:

Product and goal

• [ ] Product name, model, specification, and BOM revision
• [ ] Production site and production period
• [ ] Intended use and audience
• [ ] Functional or declared unit
• [ ] Applicable standard, customer instruction, or programme rule

Life-cycle scope

• [ ] Included and excluded stages
• [ ] Plain-language boundary statement
• [ ] Process map
• [ ] Cut-off approach
• [ ] Recycling and recovered-material treatment

Materials and suppliers

• [ ] Material and component quantities with units
• [ ] Material grades and production loss
• [ ] Recycled or biogenic content where relevant
• [ ] Supplier and production location
• [ ] Supplier PCFs, EPDs, or supporting activity data

Manufacturing

• [ ] Electricity, fuels, and direct process emissions
• [ ] Production output for the same data period
• [ ] Scrap, yield, rework, and waste treatment
• [ ] Shared-resource allocation method
• [ ] Original supporting records

Logistics, packaging, use, and end of life

• [ ] Transport origins, destinations, modes, distances, and shipment weights
• [ ] Packaging materials and quantities
• [ ] Reuse assumptions where applicable
• [ ] Use-stage scenario where included
• [ ] End-of-life scenario where included

Calculation and evidence

• [ ] Dataset names, versions, reference years, and geographies
• [ ] Global warming potential basis
• [ ] Unit conversions and allocation formulas
• [ ] Data-quality assessment
• [ ] Assumptions and exclusions register
• [ ] Sensitivity checks for material uncertainties
• [ ] Source links or documents
• [ ] Calculation and review history

Common PCF data mistakes

Watch for these recurring problems:

1. Using the wrong BOM revision. The carbon model no longer matches the product being sold.
2. Treating purchasing data as product data. Annual purchases may include inventory changes, losses, or other products.
3. Mixing periods. Factory energy, production output, and supplier data cover different periods without adjustment.
4. Using a supplier’s office as the production location. This can lead to the wrong electricity mix, transport route, or dataset.
5. Ignoring production loss. Finished-product mass is used instead of actual material input.
6. Double counting. Packaging, transport, renewable electricity, or supplier emissions appear in more than one part of the model.
7. Selecting factors without rationale. The factor name looks similar, but its geography, technology, or boundary does not match.
8. Hiding assumptions in formulas. A reviewer can see the number but cannot reconstruct the decision.
9. Starting with the final report template. The team formats the result before resolving boundary, quality, and evidence gaps.

Frequently asked questions

Does ISO 14067 require supplier-specific data for every material?

Not necessarily. Suitable secondary data may be used where supplier-specific information is unavailable, subject to the goal, scope, materiality, applicable rules, and data-quality needs of the study. Document the substitution and its limitations.

Is a BOM enough for an ISO 14067 PCF?

No. A BOM describes product composition. A credible PCF normally also needs manufacturing, supplier, logistics, packaging, calculation, quality, and evidence data.

Can data from different years be combined?

Potentially. Disclose the periods and assess whether older data remains representative of the current product, supplier, site, technology, energy source, and transport route.

Does the entire product life cycle have to be included?

No. ISO 14067 also covers partial PCFs. Clearly state the boundary and do not present a partial result as a complete life-cycle footprint.

Does ISO 14067 cover carbon-neutral claims?

ISO 14067 addresses quantification and reporting of a PCF. Carbon offsetting and communication of PCF information are outside its stated scope.

Does following ISO 14067 mean the result is verified?

No. Applying a standard and obtaining independent verification are separate activities. State the actual review or verification status.

Conclusion

An ISO 14067 data pack is not simply a BOM plus an emissions database.

A credible PCF connects a defined product to a transparent life-cycle model, representative data, documented calculation choices, and supporting evidence. Before calculating, make sure your team can explain the boundary, trace the important inputs, defend its allocation and dataset choices, identify material uncertainty, and reproduce the result.

Good documentation does not compensate for poor data. It makes limitations visible, prevents avoidable errors, and creates a practical route for improving the next calculation.

Need to assess whether your product data is ready for a PCF? Book a structured data-readiness review with Climate Seal.